Anil Kumble has always left a mark; as a bowler, as a captain, as an administrator, as a coach, as a sports entrepreneur and as a wildlife photographer. On a crisp winter morning on Sunday, the cricketing legend, in conversation with K.C. Vijaya Kumar, The Hindu ’s Sports Editor, seamlessly straddled across all these areas. By the end of the hour-long session, he had left his mark on the audience too.
What has stood out, apart from his meticulousness, is his immense self-belief and ability to not be shackled by the various orthodoxies. “There were a lot of doubts from the time I walked into the team,” Kumble said. “When you see someone bowling leg break with an off-spinners grip …. reports suggested that at best I could just restrict a batsman and I needed doctored pitches. In fact, the first question after my final match in Delhi was ‘how does it feel to retire after taking 600 plus wickets without actually spinning the ball!”
Sticking to USP
“But I always went back to someone who I idolised and looked up to, B.S. Chandrasekhar. He would just tell me ‘as long as your nip is there.. the pace at which the ball goes in at the batsman after pitching, don’t worry. That was my USP and I stuck to it.”
With the advent of T20 cricket, such non-conformity has been mainstreamed, Kumble felt. “I was glad that there were not too many coaches who looked to change the style that I bowled. Now, with [Jasprit] Bumrah, if he had to conform to what we believe is the way a fast bowler should bowl, then I don’t think he would have emerged as a leading fast bowler.”
Four-day match
For today’s generation, the five-day Test match too seems like an anachronism that needs to be shed, but Kumble, who is the Chairman of the ICC Cricket Committee, said he was not keen on the idea.
“The players don’t want a four-day match. It’s a Test only if it is five days, not four. I am very clear on that. It was discussed a couple of years ago. The experiment was done with South Africa and Zimbabwe I think and maybe some boards have that idea. But I don’t think in the Committee or within the ICC there is immediate thinking on having a four-day Test that is mandatory.”
If there is one trait that has defined Kumble right through, it is his ability to put the game and the institutions above individuals; be it during the infamous ‘Monkeygate’ incident during the 2007-08 tour of Australia, or when he stepped down as India coach in mid 2017 following a hugely successful one-year stint.
Bedi’s suggestion
“If you keep the institution and the sport in the larger interest then I think you tend to take the right decision. In Australia, one of our former captains sent me a message saying ‘son, take a decision as to how history will look at you.’ It was a very great suggestion from Bishen Singh Bedi. Yes, we had to take Harbhajan Singh, the player affected the most, into confidence. But the stance of continuing with the tour helped.”
“And if I could walk away from being captain of India and retire from the sport, I think anything after that is easy. [Resigning as coach] was the right decision that needed to be done in the interest of the team. Coaches are there to enable the players, to create an environment where the team could be successful. I was really glad that we were able to achieve that over a period of one year. I don’t regret stepping away.”
